In our final edition at the recent Paris Air Show we revealed that Saudi Arabia had already concluded a contract for 72 Eurofighter Typhoons with the UK government worth $16 billion for the airframes alone. A spokesman for the UK government's Defence Export Services Organisation (DESO) denied to AIN that the deal, named Al-Salam, had actually been signed. DESO this week discounted a recent UK national newspaper report, that the agreement will be formally inked by mid-September. "The discussions are ongoing, we hope to complete them by the end of the year," the spokesman told AIN. Since various industry sources have told AIN that the Al-Salam deal has been agreed, if not signed, then the UK government should not be concerned about the upcoming opportunity for the Royal Saudi Air Force to closely inspect the rival Dassault Rafale combat jet. AIN has learned that the first French Air Force Rafale squadron plans to visit to the Kingdom later this year.